Garment waistband



July 11, 1944.

' A. J. E. KEY

GARMENT WAISTBAND Filed Feb. 27, 1941 Ill? INVENTOR AVA 9AM: E.KEY.

ATTORNEY Patented July 11, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 7 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in waistbands for garments, andmore particularly to waistbands provided with elastic sections and whichare adapted to support various types of garments about the waist of thewearer.

The waistband of the present invention is adapted to be attached intoany type of garment which is worn about the waist of the wearer such asskirts, dresses, slacks, shorts, bathing suits, girdles, corsets,trousers and the like, for men, women and children.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide an improvedwaistband to be secured into garments and adapted to firmly support thegarment about the waist of thewearer but in such a way as to permitfreedom of action.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved garmentwaist-support which is adapted to keep the garment from stretchingsubstantially and prevents uneven sagging of the garment about the waistof the wearer.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improvedwaistband adapted to be secured into the waist portion of a garment andwhich is adapted to keep the garment snugly fit to the form of thewearer but which at the same time permits the muscles of the wearer tomove freely in any type of activity.

Accordingly, the improved waistband of the present invention comprisesfront and side portions of non-elastic material such as firm cordedbelting, the center of the front portion being generally wider than theside portions, and a back portion comprising symmetrically spacedelastic sections of substantial length secured respectively to said sideportions and to a central non-elastic portion of relatively firm stiffmaterial, said elastic sections and said central portion .of thewaistband being substantially wider than said side and front portions.

lhe elastic sections of the waistband preferably comprise a plurality ofoverlapping strips or bands of elastic material arranged so that eachsection is gradually wider toward the backcenter of the waistband. Thewaistband is also preferably provided with a suitable fastening deviceor devices which may be placed in the center of the back or front or inthe side. The waistband, when it is to be used on skirts, trousers andsimilar garments, is also preferably provided with side portions orsections of corded rubber or corded belting with interwoven strands ofrubber adapted to prevent the wearers blouse or shirt from pulling out.

Other features and advantages of the improved waistband will be apparentto those familiar with such articles from the following more detaileddescription thereof taken in connection with the accompanying drawing inwhich:

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the improved waistband secured ina garment with parts broken away, the waistband being shown as providedwith side fastenings to correspond to the side opening used in a dressor skirt.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the waistband provided with fasteningsin the center of the front portion.

Figure 3 is a side profile view of a waistband like that shown in Figure1.

Figure 4 is a view similar to that of Figure 2 showing the improvedwaistband with fastenings in the back center section.

Figures 5 is an enlarged broken sectional view of a portion of thewaistband showing the structure of the elastic sections.

Referring to the drawing in which like reference characters refer to thesame parts in the different views the improved waistband comprises afront portion I0 which is relatively wide centrally and becomesgradually narrower toward the side portions l2 which comprise thenarrowest portions of the waistband. The material in these portions ofthe waistband are of firm non-elastic material such as dress :belting.The front portion 10 is preferably symmetrically shaped with gentlecurved lines, as shown clearly in Figures 2 and 4.

In Figure 1 the waistband is shown as stitched or tacked into a garmentsuch as a dress, by means of tack stitching is around the top of thewaistband, and as provided with side fastenings it, which may comprisemetal hooks-and-eyes. The side fastenings. as shown are located so thatthey correspond with any side opening which may be usual or provided inthe garment in which the waistband is to be secured and worn.

The back portion of the waistband comprises two symmetrically arrangedelastic sections on either side of a central non-elastic section 18which is preferably composed of two layers of relatively heavy cordeddress belting of which the front and side portions of the waistband arepreferably made. Each of the elastic sections comprises a plurality ofrelatively wide strips 29 (three strips being preferred) in fan-likeoverlapping louvered arrangement as shown in Figures 4 and 5, theoverlap being less toward the center section 18 than toward the sideportions l2, so that the waistband is substantially wider and more rigidin the back than in any other portion. In the louvered arrangement ofthe strips or bands as shown in Fig. 5, the elastic strips are notattached to each other except at their points of attachment to thesections l2 and II! or 28. This structure permits the individualfunctioning of each strip in accordance with the movements of the backmuscles of the wearer. The center section I8 may be made by folding apiece of corded belting material of about twice the size of the piece H3in the middle, over one end of each of the strips 20 and sewing theoverlapped material together with the ends of the strips 20 between. Theopposite ends of the strips 20 are also sewed onto the portions l2. Theoverlapped strips 20 may extend substantially into the section l8 andthereby materially stiffen it and avoid the use of bones.

The waistband may be finished if desired, as shown in certain of theviews, by covering any or all out edges of the belting and ends ofelastic strips with bias taping 22. The points of attachment of thefastenings are also preferably taped as shown. These fastenings may beplaced as desired. In Figure 2 the waistband is provided with frontfastenings 24 and in Figure l with back fastenings 26, the latter beingsecured to two similar relatively rigid sections of material 28 to whichin turn are attached the inner ends of the elastic strips 20 as shown,and in the manner described above with respect to the center piece l8.

The side view in Figure 3 shows the curved form-fitting design and therelative widths of the different portions as well as the Shape of theback portion. The element l8 or it's corresponding elements 28intended'to cover a portion of the spine of the wearer while the elasticsections come over the back muscles, which extend downward from thewaist to'the lower portions of the body, and permit free action withample support for the garment of the wearer. The back structure of thewaistband furthermore keeps the garment from sagging in the small of thewearers back and prevents the appearance of subtle muscle lines thattend to make the wearer look larger. The shape of the waistband preventslongitudinal wrinkling often found in the use of such" articles. Thefan-like arrangement of the strips 20 provide elastic strips which fanout over the back muscles of the wearer to the wide back section l8 andchecks or eliminates the ap pearance of these muscular lines.

As an example of the sizes of the various portions of the-improvedwaistband for a medium sized woman, the following were foundsatisfactory: Width at the center'of the front portion, one andthree-fourths inches; at the side, one and one-half inches; and at thecenter of the back, two and one-fourth inches. Length of the elasticsections about two and one half inches. The elastic sections which maycomprise from 2 to 4 bands 20, are preferably made from about one inchrelatively heavy elastic (fabric covered rubber) The improved waistbandis preferably provided with side portions 30, three or more inches inlength of corded rubber or corded belting with interwoven strands ofrubber. These portions 30 may be an integral part of the waistband ormerely sewed in on the inside of the waistband so that they come overthe hips of the wearer and are therefore adapted to hold a blouse orshirt down in the garment to which the waistband is secured. a

In tacking the waistband into a garment French knot stitch along the topedge is very satisfactory. The portions of the garment coming over theelastic sections should be gathered slight- 1y, preferablyimperceptible, when they are tacked to these sections, so that theseportions of the garment will not be stretched unduly when the elasticsections are stretched during use.

It is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to thedetails of size and construction described, but that variousmodifications are intended to come within the scope of the claims whichdefine the invention.

Having described the invention in its preferred form, what is claimed asnew is:

1. An improved belt-type waistband adapted to be secured into a garmenton the wearer, comprising front and side portions of a firm nonelasticmaterial and a back portion comprising an intermediate non-elasticportion of relatively firm fabric material and substantiallysymmetrically placed elastic sections of substantial length securedrespectively to said side portions and to said intermediate non-elasticportion of relatively firm material, said intermediate portion beingadapted to be worn over the spine of the wearer while said elasticsections extend over the wearers adjacent back muscles, said elasticsections comprising a plurality of overlapping individual strips ofelastic material the ends of which are attached respectively to a sideportion and to said intermediate portion, the waistband being adapted tofit the wearer snugly but permit proper and free muscular action byreason of the presence of said elastic sections.

2. A waistband as defined by claim 1 in which the said strips areattached to each other only at their ends and in which the overlap ofsaid strips is gradually less toward the intermediate back portion ofthe waistband.

3. A waistband as defined by claim 1 in which the said back portion issubstantially wider and more rigid than the said front and sideportions.

4. An improved belt-type waistband adapted to be secured into a garmentand to support the garment about the waist of the wearer, said waistbandbeing provided with a detachable fastening for holding it around thewaist of the wearer and comprising non-elastic front and side portionsadapted. to extend over the abdomen and hips respectively of the wearer,the side portions being narrower than the front portion, a symmetricallyshaped back portion of substantially greater width than the frontportion and comprising a wide central section of firm stiff non-elasticfabric material and an elastic section attached respectively to eachside thereof and to a side portion of the waistband, each elasticsection being comprised of at least three strips of elastic materialarranged in an overlapping louvered manner to provide a fan-shapedstructure, the wider end of which is attached to said central section.

5. A waistband as defined by claim 4 in which said central section issubstantially more rigid than said front section and is adapted toextend long wide fabric bands which overlap longitudinally in a louveredarrangement in which the bands are unattached along the overlap, one endof each band being attached to said central section, the fan-shapedsections having their wider ends secured to said central section, andsaid central section of the belt being adapted to be worn over the spineof the wearer while said fanshaped sections extend on either side overthe 10 wearers adjacent back muscles.

AVA JANE E. KEY.

